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Hare Krishna

Formally International Society For Krishna Consciousness, religious movement founded in the United States by A. C. Bhaktivedanta (Swami Prabhupada; 1896-1977) in 1966. The movement claims a lineage of spiritual masters dating to Caitanya (1485-1533), whom it regards as an incarnation of both the deity
Krishna, the warrior god with an alternate form, Vishnu, of the Bhagavadgita, and Krishna, the lover god in the Bhagavata-Purana.

The Hare Krishna movement is authoritarian and conservative and emphasizes religious enthusiasm. Its appeal has been largely to alienated youths, who could frequently be seen on city streets, shaven-headed and swathed in Hindu garments, chanting and soliciting contributions from passers-by. Devotees accept a four-caste system whose positions are determined by aptitude, rather than birth.

Humans are regarded as souls composed of Krishna's highest energy, with bodies of maya his lowest, material, and illusory energy. In order to achieve peace and happiness believers are urged to return to their original relationship with Krishna (called Krishna Consciousness) through Bhakti-Yoga

This involves recognizing Krishna as the highest personality of godhead, whose servants perform his works with no thought of reward, and surrendering to Krishna and his representative, the spiritual master on Earth. It also entails taboos against gambling, using intoxicants, eating meat, and engaging in illicit sex. Besides congregational chanting, believers are to chant privately each day in order to purify themselves from illusory maya.

Hare Krishna temples are communes in which unmarried men and women live separately, with married couples having other quarters. Each temple has its own officers and supports itself by soliciting funds and selling publications of the Bhaktivedanta Trust. Temples are subservient to members of a governing commission. Of the governors, some are empowered as spiritual masters to initiate new members and oversee spiritual life in the temples. Hare Krishna members assume Hindu customs and dress. They have been especially criticized for their aggressive proselytizing in public places.

SWAMI PRABHUPADA, Indian religious leader and author who in 1965 founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement.

In 1920 Bhaktivedanta completed his B.A. in chemistry at the Scottish Churches' College in Calcutta; by that time, his family had arranged a marriage for him, and he later established a pharmacy business. In 1922 his guru, a spiritual leader of the Vaisnava Hindu sect, urged him to preach the teachings of Krishna throughout the Western world. Thereafter Bhaktivedanta devoted much time as lecturer, writer, editor, and translator for the Vaisnava and in 1933 was formally initiated as a disciple at Allahabad.

Because his family did not share his religious interests, Bhaktivedanta turned over his business to a son and renounced all family ties in 1954 to devote his full time to religious work. He received the title of swami in 1959 and in 1965 sailed for Boston, Mass., U.S. Several months later he moved to New York City, where he established the headquarters of the Hare Krishna movement on the Lower East Side. From a storefront, he taught classes on Vedic culture, which he claimed could affect the consciousness of a world afflicted with rampant materialism. The movement became especially popular among young people, and many of the swami's books began to be studied on college and university campuses.

Despite his failing health, Bhaktivedanta by the time of his death had written and published more than 50 books on ancient Vedic culture and had opened more than 100 centres throughout the world.

Hinduism outside India

Since the latter part of the 19th century large colonies of Hindu migrants have been established in East Africa, Malaysia, the islands of the Pacific and the Indian Ocean, and some of the islands of the West Indies. These migrants have taken their religion with them and have adhered to it faithfully for several generations. In recent years they have been aided by Hindu missionaries, chiefly from the Arya Samaj or the Ramakrishna Mission. Since World War II many Hindus have also settled in the United Kingdom. Most of these migrants, however, are comparatively uneducated, and their religion has made little impression on the people among whom they live. They also have made no serious attempts to gain converts. Yet, one of the most striking aspects of contemporary Western culture is its readiness to accept Eastern religious ideas in a way that is unprecedented since the days of the Roman Empire. A recent manifestation of the spread of Indian religious attitudes in the Western world is the cult, officially known as the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, with its principal office in Los Angeles. This is essentially a bhakti movement, broadly following the precedents of Caitanya. Since its foundation by a Hindu sannyasi, A. C. Bhaktivedanta

(Swami Prabhupada), in 1966, its growth has been surprising, and sankirtana (devotional singing and dancing) can be seen in the streets of New York City and London, performed by young men and women from Christian or Jewish homes wearing dhotis and saris. These manifestations are part of a process that began in 1784 with the first English translation of a Hindu religious text, Charles Wilkins' version of the Bhagavadgita.

Hinduism is not by nature a proselytizing religion, however, in part because of its inextricable roots in the social system and the land of India. In recent years, many new gurus, such as Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and Satya Sai Baba, have been successful in making converts in Europe and the United States. The very success of these gurus, however, has produced material profits that many people regard as incompatible with the ascetic attitude appropriate to a Hindu spiritual leader; in some cases, the profits have led to notoriety and even legal prosecution. In addition, the self-proclaimed conversion to questionable forms of "Hinduism" by popular singers and film stars has tended both to increase the glamour and to diminish the respectability of these new forms of Orientalism. That Hinduism is flourishing in India is obvious; that it has made, and can continue to make, a genuine contribution to Western religious thought is undeniable; that the invasion of the gurus is a part of that contribution is highly debatable.

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